About

Reader in Education Studies & Director of Postgraduate Research

School of Education, Learning and Communication Sciences

University of Warwick

Dr Thomas Perry is an applied social scientist and methodologist of education whose work focuses on how complex problems in education systems can be studied rigorously and in ways that inform practice and policy. His research examines how knowledge, evidence and expertise are generated, mobilised and governed across school and higher education systems, with a particular emphasis on the relationships between research, policy and professional practice.

He specialises in the design and leadership of complex, multi-strand research programmes that integrate advanced quantitative methods, mixed methods, systematic review and theory-based evaluation. His work brings these approaches together to address real-world problems that cut across levels of the system, including institutional capacity, professional learning and system reform. He is Reader in Education Studies and Director of Postgraduate Research in the School of Education, Learning and Communication Sciences at the University of Warwick.

Research Interests:

• Knowledge, Evidence and Expertise in Education Systems – How education systems organise and use knowledge, evidence, professional judgement and data, including the role of research across schools and higher education in contexts of policy, organisational and technological change.
• Research–Policy–Practice Interfaces – How research is translated, interpreted and enacted in policy and professional settings; including partnerships, implementation processes, and system-level reform.
• Methodology for Complex Educational Research – The design and integration of advanced quantitative methods, mixed methods, systematic review and theory-based evaluation to study complex, multi-level and real-world problems; including multi-strand and collaborative research involving practitioners and institutions.
• Equity, Effectiveness and Institutional Development – Educational inequalities, workforce development, leadership, accountability and structural reform across school and higher education sectors.

Tom’s work is characterised by a focus on complex, system-level problems that require the integration of multiple forms of data, theory and evidence. He has specialist expertise in designing and delivering large-scale, multi-component studies, including those involving practitioners and postgraduate researchers, and in aligning methodological rigour with practical and policy relevance. His work combines systematic review, advanced quantitative analysis, mixed methods integration and theory-based evaluation to generate robust and actionable insights. He has advised governments, funders and education organisations on research design, evidence use and policy development, and his work has informed national debate, including coverage in The Times Educational Supplement, Schools Week and BBC Radio 4.